On The Alert (Harbor News) Click name for author info, most recent articles ... In 30 to 50 years, the state's white-tailed deer population could be obliterated, according to some scientists. [News Source]

University of Wisconsin-Madison (University of Wisconsin - Madison) Prions, the rogue proteins that cause chronic wasting disease and similar maladies, may be more mobile in soil that is more alkaline, suggests a new study by University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers. [News Source]

Stanford Disease Research Effort Calls On PS3 Users (Grid Computing Planet) Sony announced it's going to give its PlayStation 3 (PS3) users the ability to help medical research. [News Source]

MIDDAY BUSINESS REPORT: NASD makes it easier for investors to check out brokers (Kansas City Star) Investors can more easily check brokers’ backgrounds for registration compliance, customer complaints and regulatory problems at an Internet site launched this morning by NASD. [News Source]

NMPF opposes opening Canadian border to breeding animals (AG Weekly) ARLINGTON, Va. - The National Milk Producers Federation, in comments submitted Friday (March 9) to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, is opposing the resumption of cattle exports from Canada for breeding or herd replacement purposes. [News Source]

S. Korea, U.S. remain divided in FTA agriculture talks. Agriculture free trade talks between South Korea and the United States remained in a stalemate on Monday as neither side made any concessions on critical issues. [News Source]

What people really think about living in the countryside. The survey also revealed that public opinion of UK farming is extremely positive among the rural community. A healthy majority felt farmers should be paid for environmental measures on their land. [News Source]

Toward Safer Disposal Of Animals Infected With Mad Cow And Other Prion Diseases (Science Daily) Burying prion-infected carcasses of cattle, deer and other animals in lime may actually enhance the spread of those infectious proteins through soil, a new study suggests. Placing quicklime on carcasses once was thought to be the best way to foster quick decay of bodies and to prevent the spread of disease. [News Source]

South Korea and U.S. hold talks on beef imports (Houston Chronicle) The talks come after Seoul informed Washington earlier this month that it will adjust its standards on bone fragments, seen as a possible concession to help get U.S. beef back into South Korean markets after an absence of more than three years due to fears of mad cow disease. [News Source]

South Korea, U.S. Hold Talks on Beef (AP via Yahoo! Finance) South Korea and the United States began talks Monday on banned bone fragments in American beef shipments and other agriculture issues, officials said, part of efforts to clinch a free trade deal by the end of this month. [News Source]